Cory Sandhagen books Mario Bautista rematch at UFC 329
Cory Sandhagen will run back his 2019 win over Mario Bautista at UFC 329 on July 11 in Las Vegas, multiple outlets confirmed Monday following an initial report from MagicM on social media.
The bantamweight pairing was finalized for the International Fight Week card at T-Mobile Arena, per MMA Fighting. Sandhagen submitted Bautista in the opening frame when they met at UFC Fight Night 143 in January 2019, with Bautista stepping in on short notice to replace John Lineker.
Sandhagen seeks bounce-back after title loss
Sandhagen has dropped two of his last three. The 35-year-old fell short in his most recent outing, losing a five-round decision to former champ Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 320 in October. Before that, he earned the title shot with a lopsided stoppage of Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC Des Moines last May.
Bautista has gone 11-2 inside the Octagon since his promotional debut loss to Sandhagen. The MMA Lab product saw an eight-fight win streak snapped by Umar Nurmagomedov at UFC 321, then rebounded with a second-round submission of Vinicius Oliveira at UFC Vegas 113 in February, according to Sherdog.
UFC 329 does not yet have a main event, though the card is rumored to feature Conor McGregor’s first appearance since June 2021. Heavyweight prospect Gable Steveson is also expected to make his promotional debut on the card against an opponent to be named.
Photo by Aliya Amangeldi on Unsplash
Original reporting:
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